Page 92 of Irreversible

“Look what you made me do, Everly.” The Timekeeper bristles, shaking his head. “Now my favorite suit is ruined.” His jaw tics with distaste as he swipes chunks of brain matter off his jacket. Then he pivots toward me, pointing the weapon at my forehead. “Inconvenient.”

I go still.

I’m staring down the barrel of a gun.

This is it.

I squeeze my eyes shut, returning to the foyer of my home. Jasper, lying in a pool of blood with a bullet in his back.

My husband, dead.

My life, over.

Memories unfurl, sweeping through my mind in vivid Technicolor. Dinner dates, wine mixers, inside jokes, future-planning. Dancing on street corners with my best friend. Falling asleep in my mother’s arms as she strokes my hair and sings my favorite song.

So many moments. So many dreams.

But memories are fleeting, and now I dream in black and white, my colors running dry. Everything is gray…everything except for him.

Isaac.

He’s going to make it.

It’s too late for me, but he’ll get out of here. He’s going to be okay.

I open my eyes and stare at the smoking barrel, a sense of peace washing over me. Finality. This was always in the cards for me. I know that.

But there’s hope for Isaac. He’s already on the other side of these walls, bringing back help. Not for me, but for the other trapped souls who deserve a second chance at life.

My dying wish is that Isaac will burn this murderous hell house to the motherfucking ground, and The Timekeeper will become nothing but ashes in the wind. A stain.

Justice will be served.

Justice for Isaac. For Joy. For Mitchell, Kara, Mary, and all the others.

For Sara.

I inhale sharply and watch as he presses a finger to the trigger, and then…

Nothing.

The Timekeeper winks at me with his crystalline eye, returning the pistol to his waistband. “As you can see, I can be a merciful man when warranted. Roger was a dutiful soldier for many years. Perhaps I gained a soft spot for him.” He nudges Roger’s corpse with the toe of his shoe, then looks back over at me. “But I assure you, lover boy won’t have it quite as easy. I reckon his painful screams will be a worthy soundtrack to your nightmares tonight.”

No.

Tears pour down my cheeks.

I choke on my cries, thrashing and twisting in Dolph’s grip as my bare feet streak through a pool of blood.

“Give her some antibiotics,” my captor orders. Straightening his tie, he spares Dolph a quick glance before aiming his attention at me, a grin curling his lips. “I’m not done with her yet.”

22

Shouts echo from another part of the building, mingling with the deafening ring. I’ve got to disappear, right fucking now.

With my heart speeding out ahead of me, I pick a direction and pray it’s the right one—if such a thing exists around here. Way down at the end of this hall, a door without a keypad catches my eye. Though it might lead to more trouble, or a dead end, the footsteps heading in my direction give me no time to second guess it.

I break into a run, speeding away from my pursuers in search of a place to hide, the ogre’s untied clodhoppers making me stumble over my own feet. When I reach the end, I keep going, like a battering ram. The closed door barely slows my fall as it swings open into an unmarked stairway.

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